Gilbert Arenas' aide Brandon Jennings gives update on Alijah Arenas
On Thursday, second-generation hooper Alijah Arenas was involved in a car accident that required him to be placed in a medically induced coma as a result of smoke inhalation.
Following reports that Arenas had written out a message asking if he had hurt anyone in the crash, former Milwaukee Bucks guard Brandon Jennings, who appears on Gilbert Arenas' 'Gil's Arena' podcast, shared another optimistic update on Saturday.
In a post on X, he relayed an update to fans following a visit to Alijah Arenas:
"Saw my young boy Alijah today he smiled and shook my hand!!! Keep the family in your prayers."
According to TMZ, Arenas woke up on Friday and showed what the outlet said was a "significant" amount of progress. Despite that, at the time of TMZ's update on Friday, Arenas was still intubated.
Per a previous update from ESPN's NBA insider Shams Charania, while Arenas did inhale smoke during the car crash, he didn't sustain any broken bones in the collision.
A follow-up report from TMZ notably indicates that the LA police now believe the crash, which saw Alijah Arenas hit a fire hydrant before colliding with a tree, was caused by excess speed.
"Nothing short of miraculous" - Alijah Arenas' family releases statement in the wake of crash
As the NBA community eagerly awaits updates, Alijah Arenas' family has released a statement regarding the NBA hopeful's accident and his recovery.
The statement notably praised the "act of courage" by passersby in helping rescue Arenas from the crash. Included in the statement released by the Arenas family was a quote from one of the individuals who helped save the second-generation hooper.
In it, the unnamed person was quoted as saying that they heard banging on the car window. However, because of the thick smoke, they couldn't see anything. Once they realized someone was inside, they attempted to break the window of the Tesla Cybertruck, to no avail.
Thankfully, the source said, that with some help, they were able to bend the window enough for Arenas to get out. ESPN relayed the statement from the Arenas family, which read, in part:
"This act of courage, along with Alijah's incredible will to survive, has been nothing short of miraculous."
So far, there have been no further updates on Arenas or how long it will take him to recover from the accident.
